Finding the Truth
by bluephoenixsong
Summary: When Jessica Caine comes into work with mysterious injuries will history repeat itself or will Horatio find the truth about her and Ryan Wolfe? Rated T for harsh language.
1. Waiting

**So here it is, the next story in the lives of Jessica and Ryan. This story is _really_ super short. I mean like I almost wrote the entire thing in one day short. This one takes place over the course of one day after Jessica's returned from Denver. There really isn't a whole lot to it. I just felt that this part didn't really fit in with "Hotel Nights" nor does it fit in with the next story I've started. So here it stands alone. I would post this story all in one day but I've already updated a lot already and I don't want to spam everyone's email with updates, so the rest will be up in the next day or so.  
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**This is the sixth story in my Jessica/Ryan series. I'm giving this one a T rating for language and minor sexual content. There are no smut scenes, but there are some suggestive scenes, but nothing vulgar.**

Finding the Truth  
>Waiting<p>

Jessica stood in the bathroom anxiously waiting. She stared at the little stick and willed it to move faster. The door clicked and Ryan walked in. He smiled at her but the smile quickly faded when he saw the distressed look on her face.

"Jessica," he said, "Is something wrong?" Jessica sighed and held up the small box. Ryan's eyes grew in size and his mouth went dry. "You're pregnant?"

"I don't know yet." Jessica said lifting the test, "It's not seasoned yet."

"But I thought you were on the pill and we've been so careful." Ryan stammered. He stopped and thought back to the one day. "Oh god that one time, our first time I wasn't wearing a condom. Oh god what have I done?" Ryan leaned with his elbows on the counter and buried his face in his hands.

"Relax Ryan," Jessica said, "I'm on the pill so I shouldn't be pregnant."  
>"Have you actually been taking it?"<p>

Jessica cleared her throat in an annoyed manner. She slid the birth control pack in front of Ryan. He looked to see that almost every pill had been consumed. There were three missing from the last row and still four to go.

"Those are the dummy pills." Jessica said, "They're literally nothing. It's just to help remember to take it everyday at the same time. I'm on day three and by now I should have started my period but I haven't. It might just be a fluke thing. Sometimes women don't get their period when they're on the pill, especially right after they've already finished one pregnancy. I just wanted to be sure and rule out all possible variables."

"I'm sorry," Ryan said, "I didn't mean to accuse you of not taking your pill. That was rude."

Jessica held his hand and leaned her head against his shoulder. "It's alright, you were panicked." Jessica's phone beeped, signaling that time was up. "Alright, the moment of truth."

Jessica picked up the test and sighed. It was negative.

"What's the result?" Ryan asked her, not wanting to look.

"It's negative, no baby," Jessica said, tossing the test in the trash. "I'll try again in the morning just to be sure." She turned and wrapped her arms around his waist. "Sorry to scare you like that."

Ryan kissed her head and held her close. "It's alright, I'm sorry I was so snappy."

Jessica nuzzled her face into his chest. "I told you it was ok, you were scared, I know I was."

"Jess," Ryan said quietly, "Do you want to know a secret?"

"What is it, pumpkin?" Jessica asked looking into his eyes.

"I was kind of hoping a little that it was positive."


	2. You still get Me

You still get me

Horatio Caine sighed as he read the text from his daughter. The test came back negative, she wasn't pregnant. He stared out the window in his kitchen, his thoughts wandering. Jessica had come to him earlier that day with tears in her eyes. She told him she thought she might be pregnant again because her period was late. It was only by a few days but it still shook her because it had been almost a month since she and her boyfriend, Ryan Wolfe, had unintentionally had unprotected sex. She promised she would get tested and tell him as soon as she knew.

Horatio took a long drink of his scotch and continued to look out into the night sky. He was relieved that his daughter wasn't pregnant because he knew her body was still healing from when she had been kidnapped and her last baby aborted with a metal hook. There had been a lot of damage done to her uterus and Alexx had told her to not plan on having another baby for at least six months. Even after that she should wait a few years before trying for a baby.

Horatio couldn't help but feel disappointed though. He had been elated at the news he was going to have a grandchild. That is after he got over the fact that the father was Ryan Wolfe. He knew though with time Jessica and Ryan would be willing to try for another baby.

Horatio walked through his house and into his master bedroom. He rummaged through the top drawer in his dresser and found the box he was looking for. He opened the ring box and stared at the rings inside. They had belonged to Jessica's mother and biological father. It was her mother's engagement ring and their matching wedding bands. They were beautiful and shined even in the dim light of his bedroom. The rubies were perfect and each tiny pearl was still there.

Horatio remembered the day Brian had asked him to come along to pick out a ring for him to propose to Jessica Stone, his daughter's mother, the original Jessica Stone. They had gone to three different stores but nothing struck Horatio as the right one. They finally stopped at one last place before calling it a day and there it was. It was a silver ring with a large ruby. There were several impossibly tiny pearls surrounding it and the silver frame wrapped along the top and bottom of the ruby. Along the band was an engraving of a vine. The ring came with matching wedding bands. They were silver with four evenly spaced rubies encrusted in the metal. The vine was also engraved into the metal and wrapped around each ruby.

Horatio grabbed Brian and dragged him over to the display. Brian agreed it was prefect and placed an order to have a set custom made for him and Jessica. Horatio asked the clerk if the vine was the only engraving the ring could have and the clerk had told him for a price they could change it to whatever they wanted. Horatio suggested Brian change the vine to a Celtic knot. Jessica was very proud of her Irish heritage and the Celtic knot was one thing that exemplified her love for her ancestors. Brian agreed and changed the engraving to a Celtic knot.

Horatio stared at the rings and felt his heart grow heavy. Jessica's mother had asked him if he had picked it out and Horatio was surprised she was able to figure it out. He closed the box and returned it to its hiding place. He hardly ever looked at the rings anymore since Jessica's parents' death. He didn't even think his daughter knew what they looked like or that they even existed still.

Brian had instructed in his will that Horatio was to give the rings to the man that was to marry his daughter. Horatio wondered if that man would be Ryan Wolfe someday. Ryan said he loved Jessica more than anyone in the world and was willing to prove it to Horatio. He had done so many times over the course of the ten months Ryan and Jessica had been dating, but when it came to the topic of marriage Ryan always seemed scared.

One night Jessica had called Horatio crying because Ryan had hastily left to go for a walk after Jessica said something about where they would live once they were married. Horatio talked to his daughter for over two hours while she waited for her boyfriend to come home. When he did Horatio demanded to speak to Ryan.

"Mr. Wolfe, if you ever walk out on my daughter like that again I will have your neck!" he had threatened him. Ryan quietly answered "Yes sir" and tried to explain he had had a sudden panic attack and needed some space. "Then at least explain that before you leave my daughter bawling on the phone with me!"

Horatio laid in his bed wearing the Red Wings shirt his daughter had bought him for Christmas as a joke. She knew he was a Chicago Blackhawks fan and truly detested the Detroit Red Wings. It was Jessica's biological father that had gotten him interested in hockey. Jessica had developed the same love but for a different team. For her birthday that year Horatio had gotten his revenge by buying her a Blackhawks shirt. Jessica had laughed and said she was glad to have something else to wear when she did trash runs and dumpster diving at work.

Sleep seemed to evade him some nights. That night Horatio kept thinking back to the threatening message James had yelled at Jesse Cardoza when he had observed James's execution.

"_Watch your back CSI guy! My brothers are still there in Miami and they've got something planned for you! Tell Izzy I love her and I'll see her in hell!"_

Horatio had no clue what James meant and he feared for his daughter's safety. Jessica had refused to be placed in protective serves because she didn't want to live her life in fear. "If they're going to come after me then I'll be waiting with open arms and loaded guns!" Jessica had declared. Horatio chuckled at the thought of his daughter wielding two guns and taking down an entire gang on her own.

His thoughts shifted to his daughter's mother, the only woman he had ever truly loved. He had loved his wife Marisol, he loved her very much, but not like he had Jessica Stone. He thought of her face and the way she smelled. He felt his cock come to life and throb as he remembered all the nights they had spent together.

"Damn it Jessabelle," Horatio muttered as he stuffed his hand into his pajama pants, "After all these years you still get me."

**Yes, I just insinuated that Horatio masturbates. Enjoy that picture in your mind.**


	3. A bad trip

**If this was a movie it would be rated R just because of Jessica's language in this chapter.**

A bad trip

Jessica groaned and rolled over in her bed. Her alarm clock indicated that she had another fifteen minutes before she had to get up. Deciding it was senseless to lie in bed she turned the alarm off. She sat up and reached over and shook Ryan's arm.

"Hey fuck nuts, wake up," she said as she continued to shake him. Ryan groaned and covered his head with a pillow. "I don't want to get up," he mumbled into the pillow.

"Well too bad, you have to go to the doctors today before work so get up!" Jessica ordered, grabbing the pillow off his head. Ryan groaned again and buried himself under the blankets.

Jessica chuckled and climbed out of the bed. She walked into the bathroom to use to toilet. When she was done she placed the pregnancy test on the counter and washed her face and looked at herself in the mirror. Horatio was right, she was looking better since she came back from Denver.

Jessica started walking towards the door when she tripped on a towel she hadn't noticed lying on the floor. She fell forward, grabbing at the counter in an attempt to break her fall, but to no avail. Jessica's face smashed hard against the doorknob and she fell to the ground.

"Ah fuck!" she screamed, grabbing at her left eye. "Ah fuckety, fuck, fuck! Oh my fucking shit! Oh god! Fucking A!"

Ryan jumped at the sound of the crash. He jumped across the bed and ran to the bathroom door. "Jessica?" he called, trying to open the locked door. "Jessica what's wrong?"

"Oh fuck that hurts!" Jessica screamed. She tried to find the doorknob with her one good eye watering. She managed to get the door open but continued to clench her eye as tears poured down her face.

Ryan looked at her sitting on the ground. Her hand covered her left eye and tears were pouring down her face. "Oh god, Jessica!" Ryan said as he knelt to the ground. "Let me see it."

Jessica slowly pulled her shaking hand away from her face. Ryan could see the skin under her eye and along her nose was already bruising. "Oh geez this doesn't look good. Can you see out of it?" Ryan asked.

Jessica's eyelid fluttered and slowly opened. She blinked a few times and looked around the room. "I can't really tell, no contacts." she said, "They're on the nightstand." Ryan grabbed Jessica's glasses and she carefully placed them on her sore face. She looked around and blinked more. "My vision is a little blurred but I think I'm fine."  
>"What happened?" Ryan asked.<p>

Jessica grabbed the towel from the floor she had tripped on. "This was on the floor and I slipped on it. I think it's the one I knocked off the counter last night and didn't pick it up. I hit the doorknob when I fell."

Ryan pulled Jessica into his arms. "I'm so sorry you got hurt, love."

"It's not your fault, it's my own clumsily, messy fault." She kissed his cheek. "How about after work you go Caption OCD on the place?" she asked with a smile. "Clearly I'm a terrible housekeeper."

Ryan chuckled and kissed her gently. "That's why I love you; you're willing to laugh at your mistakes." He stood and pulled Jessica up. "Let's get you an ice pack. I'm going to call the doctors and tell them I'm probably going to be late. I don't want you driving to work on your own with your eye like that. In fact maybe we should go to the hospital."  
>"No!" Jessica exclaimed terrified, "No hospital!"<p>

"Jess, calm down," Ryan said, "You probably should go."

"No, please Ryan, don't take me back there!" Jessica begged, clearly terrified.

Ryan felt his heart break. Jessica didn't want to go to the hospital because she had spent so much time there after she had been kidnapped. He pulled her into his arms. "Ok, no hospital, if that's what you want." He kissed the top of her head. "But ice is not an option, let's go."


	4. I never know with You

**This chapter's stupid short. lol**

I never know with you

Jessica walked out of the elevator. She could see Horatio walking down the hall talking to Jesse. She knew what he would think when he saw her face. Jessica pulled a pair of sunglasses out of her purse and switched them out for her glasses. She squinted as she tried to sign in without being able to see.

"Hey Bug," Horatio said to her, "Where's your boy?"

Jessica smiled weakly. "He's at the doctors, getting his nose checked out to make sure it's healed properly after someone broke it a few weeks ago."

Horatio blushed slightly. "I told both of you I was sorry."  
>Jessica smiled at him again. "I know Daddy, I'm just teasing you."<p>

Horatio shook his head and nudged her shoulder. "Just like your mother."

"Well I have to run to the locker room and then Natalia and I are meeting about my DNA results from yesterday." Jessica said, looking at her phone. "Got a text this morning saying I would like what she got."

Horatio nodded and smiled at her. "Alright, we still on for lunch?"

"Of course Daddy," Jessica smiled, "Do you really think I would stand you up?"

"I never know with you."

Jessica shook her head and walked away. She quickly switched back to her glasses and tried to pull her hair in front of her eye, attempting to mask it.

Jesse looked at her as Jessica walked away. "H," he said, "Does Jessica have prescription sunglasses?"

Horatio looked at Jesse slightly confused. "I don't think so."  
>"Then she may have driven here blind, because she just put on her glasses."<p>

Horatio looked towards his daughter. "Why would she do that?"


	5. I know I was

I know I was

Jessica walked into the DNA lab as she pulled on her lab coat. "Hey Talia," she said, "What have you got for me?"

"Well," Natalia started, "The sample you gave me yesterday from under the victim's nails is a match to-" Natalia stopped when she looked at Jessica. "Jess, what happened to your eye?"

Jessica turned her head and tried to hide the shiner that had appeared, but Natalia was too quick. She grabbed Jessica's arm and pulled her back. She gasped when she saw Jessica's face, the bruise a deep purple color. "Oh my god, Jessica. What happened?"

"I tripped and hit my eye on a doorknob," Jessica said, pulling herself free. "Can we get back to the results?"

"Jessica," Natalia said, clearly concerned, "Was it really a doorknob?"

"Yes! I tripped in the bathroom this morning and hit my face against the doorknob!"

"Jessica," Natalia paused, not sure if she really wanted to continue, "Was this doorknob named Ryan Wolfe?"

"What? No!" Jessica declared, stepping back, "Ryan would never hurt me!"

"Jessica, that's what I said about Nick. Please tell me the truth."  
>"Natalia, that is the truth! I would never lie to you about something like this! If Ryan had hurt me I would tell you! Probably because I would need someone to help me hide the body!"<p>

"Jessica, are you sure it was a doorknob?"

"Yes Natalia, Ryan would never hurt me intentionally."

"Intentionally?" Natalia asked.

"Oh god, Natalia can we please just drop this. I swear I tripped this morning and hit my face against a doorknob."

"I'm sorry, Jess, it's just that I lived through something like this."

"And I did too!" Jessica defensively exclaimed. "James beat me all the time but I finally got away. I swore that day I would never let any man hurt me again! If Ryan was hurting me I would have filed a lawsuit for domestic violence by now. Please Natalia, you have to believe me."  
>Natalia looked into her little sister's eyes and could see she meant everything she said. "Alright, I believe you. I'm sorry, I'm just worried. I forgot you're stronger than me."<p>

Jessica wrapped her arms around Natalia. "You're strong, you were just afraid. I know I was."


	6. Bold Face Lie

Bold Face Lie

Horatio walked into the Trace lab to find Jessica looking into a microscope while Travers explained to her what she was looking at. He stopped when he saw Horatio and picked up a file with a few pages lying on top of it.

"Horatio," he said, "I've got the trace results from your Moore case."  
>"Thank you, Travers. Bug, how does Chinese sound today?" Horatio said looking over the results.<p>

"Uh, not too bad. You paying?" she asked, leaning over a case file, her hair falling over her face.

Horatio chuckled. "As always."

Jessica turned her head and looked at him. She smiled at her father. "Good because you know as a recent college grad I have no money."

Jessica froze when Horatio looked at her. She quickly turned her face away, knowing it was too late though. Horatio grabbed her shoulder and turned her towards him. His eyes grew huge at the sight of the bruise on her face. She flinched away when he lifted his hand towards her face.

"Jessica," he said, anger filling his voice, "What happened?"

"I tripped and hit my face on a doorknob," Jessica growled, pulling out of his hold. Horatio grabbed her arm a little too forcefully and Jessica whimpered in pain.

"Jessica, what did Ryan do to you?"

"Why do you think Ryan did this?" Jessica asked defensively.

"Jessica, don't lie to me!" Horatio ordered her, "Tell me what he did to you!"

"Ryan didn't do anything! I tripped and fell into the doorknob!"  
>"Jessica, do you know how many times I've heard beaten wives say that? Then before I know it I'm digging up their shallow graves. At least give me a more believable lie!"<p>

"Fine, you want a more believable lie, how about this- Ryan beat the shit out of me. I made him mad and he beat me until I lost consciousness! I woke up like this. He told me to tell everyone I fell. Is that what you want to hear Dad? Because that's a bold face lie! Do you want me to tell you Ryan beats me? Because guess what Dad, he doesn't! He would never lay a finger on me!"

"Jessica, listen to me!" Horatio said, trying to pull her closer. Jessica flinched away and pulled her arm free.

"If you really want to know who hurts me it's you!" Jessica yelled. She turned and left the lab.

Horatio stood there watching her leave. His blood was boiling and his hands were clenched into tight fists, crumpling the file in his hand. He knew Ryan had hit her. He wanted to hurt Ryan for hurting his daughter.

"Horatio?" Travers said, "Did you want to review your results?" His attempt to change the subject was bleak, but he knew he needed to do something.

"No," Horatio said, still angry, "I have another case I need to investigate."


	7. Finding the Truth

**This was originally two chapters, but I combined them because one was just too short to be on its own. I think you can figure out where I combined them.**

Finding the Truth

Jesse was looking over pictures on the light table when the fuming Horatio walked in.

"Jesse, pack this case up." Horatio ordered loudly.

Jesse was confused. "Why? We're almost done. If the trace results from Travers are right then we can book this guy."  
>"I said pack it up!" Horatio yelled. He shoved a stack of pictures to the ground and they scattered through out the room. "We have a new case we need to investigate!"<p>

Jesse was paralyzed with fear. He slowly picked up the pictures and placed them back in the evidence envelope and back in the box. He carefully sealed it and initialed the tape. "What's the case boss?" he asked quietly. He had never seen Horatio so angry before.

"I want you to take Jessica and go see Tom." Horatio said, "I want him to examine her."  
>Jesse was lost. "Why?"<p>

"Because I want to know what that bastard is doing to her!" Horatio yelled.

Jesse looked at him confused. "Who?"

"Ryan Wolfe!" Horatio was so angry he could hardly control himself.

"Ryan? What did he do to Jessica?"

"That's what you're going to find out!" Horatio growled, walking towards the door.

"What are you going to do?"

"I'm going to wait for him!"

"Oh god H don't!" Jesse exclaimed, running after his boss.

Ryan walked out of the elevator. He was signing in at the front desk when he heard someone yell his name. He turned to see Horatio storming towards him, closely followed by Jesse. Ryan took a few steps towards Horatio. That's when he saw the anger burning in Horatio's eyes. He grabbed Ryan by the front of his shirt and slammed him against the wall.

"What did you do to her?" Horatio yelled in his face. "What did you do to my baby!"

Jesse grabbed his arm and tried to pull Ryan free. "H, stop! This isn't how you should be handling this!"

Jessica came running out of the Trace lab at the sound of her father's voice. "Dad, stop!" she yelled. Jessica grabbed Horatio's arm and pulled with Jesse. "Leave Ryan alone! He didn't do anything!"

"Stop it Jessica!" Horatio ordered her, "I know what he did to you!"

"I told you he didn't touch me!" Jessica yelled at him, "I tripped and hit my face!"

Jesse managed to pull Horatio off Ryan and held him back. He caught a glimpse of Jessica's face.

"Oh my god…." he muttered. There was a half circle bruise under her eye that looked like a fist. Blood vessels had broken across the white of her eye and red spots dotted her cornea. "Jess, what happened?"

"I tripped and fell into the bathroom doorknob," Jessica explained, "But this asshole thinks Ryan hit me! He won't believe me!"

Jesse released his grip on Horatio. "Don't move," Jesse ordered him. He walked over to Jessica and looked at her face. He slowly reached his hand up to her cheek. Jessica flinched away from him. "Please," he said to her, "Let me see." Jessica hesitated but took a small step forward. Jesse carefully placed his hand on her cheek and looked at her eye. He took her glasses off and turned her head slowly.

"H, I think Jessica's telling the truth" Jesse said.

"How?" Horatio asked, walking over to them.

"This bruise is too deep to be caused by someone's fist. And look how small it is. Ryan's hands are a lot bigger than this."

Horatio stood there still fuming. "I don't believe it." He said, "I want proof. Prove to me Ryan didn't do this."

"Fine, I will," Jesse said, releasing Jessica's face and handing her back her glasses. "But you can't help." He turned to look at Horatio. "You have to finish the Moore case. On your own and you can't touch this case or Ryan and Jessica, not until I'm done."

Horatio's eyes burned with hatred. "Fine, but you have to report to me your results."  
>"Did you think I wouldn't?" Jesse asked a little offended.<p>

"Never mind, just get to work," Horatio said, turning to walk away. He turned back to Ryan and looked at him. "I meant what I said, Mr. Wolfe." He turned and continued back down the hall.

Jessica ran to Ryan and wrapped her arms around him. "Oh god Ryan, I'm so sorry!"

"It's ok Jess," Ryan responded.

"No it's not!" Jessica said, stepping back from their embrace. "I told Horatio you didn't touch me but he's not listening and he's blowing this out of portion!"

"Jess, don't worry." He gently placed his hands on her face. Jessica didn't flinch and stared into his eyes. "You're his little girl, he thinks I hurt you, he has every right to be pissed."  
>"Excuse me Mel," Jesse said, "Would you be willing to testify that you just witnessed this encounter?"<p>

Mel looked taken aback. "I guess, why?"

"Because if Ryan really was abusing Jessica she wouldn't have just ran to him to comfort him." Jesse explained, "If you wouldn't mind writing what you witnessed down for me I would greatly appreciate it. Take your time, I'll come by later and pick it up." Jesse grabbed a patrol officer that was standing by the front desk. "Davidson, I want you to stay with Ryan for now."

Jesse turned back to Jessica and Ryan. "Alright, Horatio wants me to investigate so that's exactly what I'm going to do. You two have to be separated. I want each of you to write what happened this morning. Ryan I want you to start. You're going to go with Davidson to an interview room and write down your statement. Jessica you're coming with me to see Tom."

"Why am I going to Tom?" Jessica asked.

"He has the special infrared camera that can detect bruises that haven't formed on the surface yet." Jesse explained, "If Horatio's right, which I'm not saying he's right or wrong at this point, but if he is there should be more bruising then what's around your eye."  
>Jessica let out an exasperated sigh. "Fine, let's go." She turned and kissed Ryan. "I love you."<p>

Ryan's eyes seemed to shine. "I love you too Jess. I'm sorry this is happening."

Davidson placed his hand on Ryan's shoulder. "Come on Wolfe, let's go." He quietly said to Ryan. Ryan followed Davidson down the hall. He looked back over his shoulder at Jessica one last time.

Jessica buried her face into Jesse's chest. "I can't believe him!" she said, "Why would he think Ryan would do something like this?"

"H said it himself, you're his baby." Jesse said, "He watched you live through this once, he doesn't want to see it again."


	8. Bruises

Bruises

Tom looked at Jessica's eye while a morgue assistant snapped pictures with the camera.

"Well you certainly hit something hard and fast." Tom said. He pulled out a cold pack from the first aid kit on the counter. He activated it and carefully placed it on Jessica's eye. "I'm guessing you probably already did this but it's still really swollen." He jotted down notes. "Can you see out of that eye?"

"Yes," Jessica answered, "My vision's still a little blurred though."  
>Tom carefully pulled the ice pack down. He picked up a magnifying lens and a flashlight. "This is going to be bright." Tom warned her. He shined the light into Jessica's eyes and looked through the magnifying lens. "I don't see any damage to the retina and it looks fully intact. There doesn't appear to be any major damage to your eye. Your vision should return to normal in a day or two, but I would suggest not driving for at least a week. If your vision doesn't improve you need to see a doctor."<p>

"So I guess Ryan made a good call this morning not letting me drive." Jessica said.

"Ryan drove you in?" Jesse asked, jotting down some notes.

"Yeah, he didn't want me driving in case there was something wrong with my vision."

"Doesn't sound like a wife beater to me." Tom commented, "Did he try to take you to the hospital, too?"

"Yes," Jessica answered, shifting uncomfortably, "But I didn't want to go. I didn't want to go back again."

Tom squeezed Jessica's shoulders reassuringly. "It's ok Jess, you don't always have to go."

Tom walked to a counter and picked up the infrared camera. "Alright, I know you've worked with this before Jessica, but protocol says I have to tell you."

"Alright, hit me….poor choice of words, sorry." Jessica said.

"That's ok Jess." Tom said with a smile. "This is a special infrared camera. It takes pictures of what's below your skin, deep into the muscle. With this I can see any bruises that may be forming but haven't reached the skin yet. You ready?"

Jessica nodded her head. "I have to take off my shirt, don't I?"

"Yeah, sorry Jess."  
>"It's cool, as long as I can keep my bra on."<p>

Jessica stood from the stool she had been sitting on while Tom examined her. She pulled her shirt off over her head and dropped it on the stool. Tom, Jesse, and the morgue assistant stood there staring at her.

"Holy crap Jess," Jesse said, "That's some massive ink you got there."

Jessica lifted her arm and looked at the tattoo on her side. Yeah, I just got that a few weeks ago. I got the one on my back when I was at Penn State."

Jesse hesitated for a moment and then walked around behind Jessica. "Damn," Jesse muttered, "You a pain is pleasure person?"

"Yeah, that's why I walked into a doorknob this morning." Jessica sarcastically said.

"Alright," Tom said, "Let's get started with this."

Tom took several pictures of Jessica's upper body and arms. She held her arms up at different angles while Tom snapped pictures.

"Alright," Tom said hooking the camera up to a computer, "We'll have the results shortly. Until then you can put your shirt back on Jess."  
>"You sure Doc?" Jessica joked, "Maybe I want to show off all my ink."<p>

Tom chuckled. "Mischievous as your mother from what I've heard."

Tom typed a few commands and pictures of Jessica started appearing on the screen. There were black and white and shaded weird.

"Ok," Tom said, maximizing a picture of a shirtless Jessica's head from the shoulders up, "Now if there is some kind of sub-bruising it will show up as dark gray areas on Jessica's skin." Tom pointed to Jessica's shoulders and neck. "For example Jessica's neck is clean, therefore no one touched or hit her in that area."

Tom clicked to another picture. It was Jessica's left forearm. "No damage done here." He clicked to the next picture, Jessica's right forearm. There was a dark strip running down her arm about an inch in diameter. It ended in a sharp corner and had a straight edge. There was more bruising on her palm. "Now here it appears something hit Jessica in this area." Tom said, "With how perfect of an edge this has and the corner I believe this is consistent with hitting something stationary. Did you hit your arm on anything recently?"  
>"Yes," Jessica said, "When I fell this morning I tried to grab the counter to stop myself."<br>"What happened when you did that?" Jesse asked.

"I think I spun." Jessica thought, "I think when I grabbed the counter I started to spin and I think I hit the counter."  
>"Well that explains this." Tom said, clicking to the next picture. It was the right side of Jessica's body, her shoulder and upper arm. There were gray spots on her shoulder. "If you did spin and hit the counter then you probably hit your shoulder."<p>

"So all of this sub-bruising is consistent with tripping and falling?" Jesse asked.

"Yes, I would say so." Tom answered.

The next picture was of the back of Jessica's hands. "Now this one I think is interesting." Tom said, "Most cases where someone is beaten there are defensive wounds. Knowing Jessica the fact that her knuckles are clean tells me someone couldn't have been attacking her. I know Jess and she doesn't take shit from anyone."

"Ok…" Jesse said, jotting down more notes.

"Jesse you saw what Jessica did to those gang members. I wasn't there but it sounds like she gave them their money's worth." Tom explained, "I'm going to guess that if Ryan attacked Jessica then she would have defensive and fight marks on her hands. This isn't consistent with being attacked, at least not in Jessica's case."

"Alright, thank you Tom." Jesse said, "I think that's all we'll be needing from you."

"Actually, look at this one." Tom said. There was a close up picture of Jessica's face. They could see the bruising around her eye, but on her cornea was a ring.

"What is that?" Jesse asked.

"It's a bruise on her cornea." Tom said, "Something circular hit her eye."  
>"Jess, does Ryan wear any rings?" Jesse asked.<p>

Jessica shook her head. "No, hardly ever. Every once in a while he'll wear his Florida Police Academy ring but that's about it."

"Yeah and this looks too small to be a class ring." Jesse observed, writing down more notes. "Jess would you mind if I went to your condo and looked around?"

Jessica shook her head. "Go right ahead. If it will make Horatio get off my back you can do whatever you want."

"Alright," Jesse said, "I'm going to bring Ryan down here while you write your statement."  
>"Why is Ryan getting examined?" Jessica asked.<p>

"Well if he hit you then he's going to have bruises on his knuckles." Jesse explained, "If his knuckles come back clean then Ryan could be off the hook."

"Alright" Jessica muttered.


	9. There wasn't

There wasn't

Tom took pictures of Ryan's hands and arms. When they were done they looked at the pictures on the computer. The back of Ryan's hands were clean.

"There isn't a single trace of bruising anywhere on his knuckles." Tom said, "If Ryan hit Jessica there would be some form of bruising from hitting her eye socket." Tom clicked to the next picture; this one was Ryan's palms. There was a faint bruise on his left palm. "You're left handed, aren't you Ryan?" Tom asked.

"Yes" Ryan answered.

"You grabbed the doorknob when you heard Jessica fall, didn't you?" Jesse asked.

"Yes, I heard the crash and jumped out of bed. I tried to open the bathroom door but it was locked. I started yelling her name, trying to get her to open the door."

"Well this bruise is consistent with that story." Tom said, "You probably used a great deal of force trying to open that door that would cause this kind of bruising."

"So Tom would you say that since there's a lack of bruising on Ryan's knuckles there's no way he could have hit Jessica?" Jesse asked.

"Only if he used his hands." Tom said, "There are other ways he could have hit her."  
>"I didn't hurt her." Ryan muttered angrily, "I love Jessica."<p>

"Ryan I'm going to take you back to one of the interview rooms." Jesse said, "Do you have a key to Jessica's place? I need one to get in."

Ryan looked at him confused. "Why are you going to Jess's condo?" he asked as he pulled out his keys. He pulled off the key to Jessica's condo and handed it to Jesse.

"I'm going to check it out, see if I can find any evidence of a fight."  
>"We've told you though, there wasn't a fight."<br>"Then I shouldn't find anything."


	10. Shouldn't have waited

Shouldn't have waited

Jesse walked through the door of Jessica's condo. He looked around, taking in everything. He walked over to the wall that held all of Jessica's degrees and pictures of her family. He smiled when he recognized a younger version of Horatio chasing a tiny Jessica in a park.

Jesse climbed the stairs to the master suite, where Jessica had told him she had fallen. Jesse walked into the bathroom and pulled out his camera. He snapped pictures and jotted down notes. He didn't bother using markers since it wasn't a real crime scene, but he made sure to write down every little detail.

Jesse looked at the pregnancy test sitting on the counter. He considered his options for a moment and then decided not to take a picture of it, but he couldn't help but let curiosity get to him. Jesse looked down at the test and saw the negative sign. He read the side of the box to see it meant Jessica wasn't pregnant. He sighed and shook his head.

He pulled out some cotton swabs. After taking a few pictures of the door knob with the scale Jesse swabbed the handle, hoping for some kind of DNA. He squinted and leaned in close to the doorknob. It had a push button lock in the center. Jesse swabbed the button. He found something liquid around the edge. He sealed the swab in an envelope and continued on with his work. Jesse opened the door and snapped a few pictures of the door handle on the other side. He collected samples using cotton swabs from the keyhole on the other side.

Jesse began dusting the door handle. He was disappointed when he only got smudges. He took pictures of the counter by the door. He dusted over it and only got more smudges. Jesse took pictures of the handle and the counter and wrote down more notes.

Jesse walked into the bedroom and took a few pictures. He looked over the unmade bed and the couple of articles of clothing discarded on the floor. Jesse chuckled to himself at the thought of OCD Ryan allowing this to happen. Jesse stopped and looked at a red satin teddy. He reached down and picked it up. He brought it to his face and inhaled deeply. The smell of Jessica and the thought of her wearing the teddy made Jesse feel his pants grow tighter. Jesse looked at the teddy and let it slid from his hand. He watched it fall to the ground and felt sorrow fill his heart.

"I shouldn't have waited," he muttered to himself.


	11. I believe the evidence

I believe the evidence

Jesse walked into the DNA lab and found Natalia and Calleigh discussing DNA results. Calleigh smiled at Jesse when he walked in. "Hey there Tex," she said, "Where have you been? We've hardly seen you all day."

"I've been working on a special case Horatio gave me." Jesse said, "It's kind of urgent and Horatio wants it finished today."

"What is it?" Calleigh asked.

Jesse sighed. "It's…well…" Jesse rubbed his eyes. "Jessica came in with a black eye today and Horatio thinks Ryan did it."  
>Calleigh gasped and looked at him shocked. "Are you serious? Why would Horatio think Ryan would do such a thing?"<p>

"It's his daughter." Jesse explained, "He thinks Ryan hurt her and Horatio wants to know the truth about their relationship."

"Well I think it's a good idea." Natalia said, "You never know."

Calleigh looked at Natalia. "You really think Ryan hit Jessica?"

"I'm just saying you never know." Natalia said, "People are different when they're in public then they are at home."

"Natalia," Jesse interjected, "Can you please run these samples for me? I have pictures I really need to review so I can work on figuring this out and get back to a real case."  
>"Jesse," Calleigh said to him, "You don't really think Ryan did this, do you?"<p>

Jesse sighed and looked at her. "I'm an investigator Calleigh, I'm not suppose to want something to be true."  
>"But do you really believe he did it?" Calleigh asked again.<p>

"I believe the evidence." Jesse said, "It'll tell me."


	12. Waiting for you

Waiting for you

Jesse looked over picture after picture. Pictures from the morgue of Ryan and Jessica's bodies. Pictures from the bathroom, smudges covering the counter and doorknob. Pictures from the bedroom, where someone had clearly left the bed in a haste.

Jesse looked at Jessica's bed. He found himself wondering what it would be like, rolling around in that bed with her, sharing their bodies in such an intimate way. Jesse hated Ryan in that moment. He wished they could trade lives. Jesse would take the mess Ryan was in to be with Jessica. Jesse had fallen in love with Jessica, he wanted her so badly.

He wanted to ask her out for a drink or coffee. He had waited though. Jesse didn't want to ask an intern out on a date. He didn't want to be the butt of everyone's criticism. But Jesse hadn't felt like this about anyone since his wife. He waited. He waited and hoped his chance would come. Then there was that day, that day Ryan had been arrested and Jessica had ran after him. She ran after him and then kissed him, right there, in the lab. Jesse knew it was over.

Jesse continued to look at the pictures on the light table, trying to clear his thoughts. There were smudges all over the edge of the counter. The one had been a hand, no doubt about it. It dragged towards the ground. Jesse found a complete handprint on the floor. It was a right hand, consistent with Jessica hitting the ground when she lost her grip on the counter. There was a partial arm print, this one from a left arm. The scale in the pictures told Jesse these prints were too small to be Ryan's, so they had to be Jessica's. The prints on the counter couldn't be Ryan's either, there were also too small. If Ryan had bashed Jessica's head into the doorknob at such an awkward angle he would have had to stabilize himself. Jesse would have found Ryan's hand on the counter.

The smudges on the other side of the door were larger than the ones in the bathroom, more consistent with someone larger than Jessica, like someone male. Jesse had found an arm print on the door also, like someone had tried to force the door open. This one was also larger than the arm print in the bathroom and was too high on the door to be Jessica's.

Jesse looked at the picture of Jessica's face taken with the infrared camera. The tiny circle on her eye was a dark gray color, almost black. It loomed there, mocking Jesse. He picked up the picture of the doorknob. The push lock in the center was the exact shape and size. The bruise was only on Jessica's eye, not her eyelid.

Jesse looked at the pictures of Ryan's knuckles. There wasn't a single visible bruise on his hands or arms. Jesse knew Tom was right, Jessica wouldn't have sat there and let this happen. She would have fought back. Jessica was stronger than that; she wouldn't have let Ryan do this.

Jesse's phone rang. "Cardoza" he answered.

"Jesse," he heard Natalia say on the other end, "I've got your DNA results."  
>"Great, I'll be there in a few minutes." Jesse said, packing up his pictures, "I need to stop and talk to Travers first."<p>

"Alright, they'll be waiting for you."

Jesse walked into the DNA lab to find Natalia placing print outs in folders. She smiled at Jesse when he walked in. "Got your results right here." She cheerfully said.

"Must be good if you're this happy." Jesse commented.

Natalia gave him another happy smile. "The sample from the doorknob in the bedroom came back to Ryan. His epithelials were all over that thing. The bathroom doorknob I received a sample from Travers. He said it was ocular fluid and when I tested it I got Jessica's collage of DNA results."  
>"So she really did hit the doorknob." Jesse said to himself.<p>

"That's what it looks like. The other samples from the counter only came back to Jessica. I don't think Ryan was in that bathroom when Jessica fell."  
>Jesse smiled and accepted the print outs. "Thank Natalia" he said.<p>

Jesse left the lab and headed back to the light table. He knew he should feel relieved that Ryan was innocent but he couldn't help but feel a little disappointed. It's not that he wanted his friend to be convicted of domestic violence, not at all. It was just the fact that for a brief moment he thought he could finally have Jessica.


	13. Ok, here we go

Ok, here we go

Jesse looked over the evidence. It was all there. He could piece everything together. He knew what had happened. He dialed the number on his phone and listened to it ring.

"You better have answers for me Mr. Cardoza" Horatio said as he answered his phone.

"I do, meet me outside layout room in ten minutes." Jesse instructed.

He hung up his phone and began collecting and organizing his evidence. He carried it with him and called Officer Davidson and Officer Carl to bring Jessica and Ryan to the layout room. Soon Horatio, Jessica, and Ryan were all waiting for him, while Officer Davidson and Officer Carl waited by the door, in case anything should get too physical.

They stared at Jesse as he placed the last of his jumbo sized evidence pictures onto the light board behind him. He turned and looked at each of them. Jessica was standing with Ryan at one corner of the table gripping his hand while Horatio stood at the other. Jesse sighed when he couldn't believe he actually had to do this in order to prove to Horatio Ryan wasn't a bad guy.

"Alright, so here's the deal." Jesse began, "I have spent my entire day getting paid to act as a marriage counselor. I'm here to prove that Ryan is innocent and that he never hurt Jessica. I expect all of you to treat this case and me with respect like it was a real case. Please don't interrupt me and let me fully explain the evidence before asking questions. If you don't understand something I'll be more than happy to explain again. Ok, here we go."

Jesse turned and looked at the light board, trying to decide where to begin. He looked back the group waiting for him and pointed to a picture of Jessica taken with a regular camera.

"This is the condition in which Jessica Caine was discovered this morning. She claims that she fell in her bathroom and hit her eye on the doorknob. The bruising under her left eye is consist with hitting something circular, such as a doorknob or bedpost, but it is also consistent with being struck in the face with a fist."

Jesse pointed to a picture of Jessica's face taken with the infrared camera. As you can all see the only bruising found on Jessica's face, neck, and most of her upper body is only around her eye. There was bruising discovered on her right arm and shoulder which is consistent with her story of falling to the ground. According to Dr. Tom if any form of abuse had taken place then there would have been more bruising. There is also a lack of bruising on the knuckles of Ryan Wolfe, which indicates that Ryan never hit Jessica. There was some bruising discovered on his left palm which is believed to have occurred when he attempted to open the bathroom door this morning in a haste to try and help Jessica."

Jesse pulled down the pictures of Jessica and Ryan and slid in new pictures, these ones of Jessica's bedroom and bathroom. "These hand and finger prints covering the bathroom counter and floor as believed to be from Jessica. I was unable to get a positive match due to smudging, but the size is consistent with Jessica's hand and arm size. There were no identifiable prints on the doorknob leading into the bathroom but an arm print was recovered and is consistent with that of Ryan Wolfe.

"I also recovered DNA from both sides of the door. On the bedroom side I found epiphylls from Ryan, almost collecting in the keyhole. On the bathroom side I found ocular fluid that matched Jessica's DNA profile. This is consistent with their story of Jessica falling and Ryan rushing to her aid. I will say though that it is possible that someone could have smashed Jessica's face into the doorknob, but in order to do so at this angle that person would have had to stabilize their self on the counter. There was no evidence recovered indicting this happened."

Jesse changed the pictures out again, sliding in a picture of the doorknob and one of Jessica's face taken with the infrared camera, the circle looming on her eye. "This piece of evidence I find the most interesting. This circle was discovered on Jessica's eye but not on her eyelid. This means that Jessica had her eyes open when she hit the doorknob. When it comes to getting hit in the eyes people instinctively close their eyes in order to protect the delicate organ. If Jessica knew this was coming her eyes would have been shut. Jessica, when you went in the bathroom this morning did you lock the door?"

Jessica thought it over for a second before she answered. "No, the toilet in my bathroom is in a smaller room that locks. I usually leave the door open so Ryan can get in if he needs to."

"Which means the door locked when Jessica hit the doorknob" Jesse explained. "Jessica hit the door with such a great amount of force her eye actually locked the door and thus resulting in this bruise. Ryan are you left handed?"

"Yeah" Ryan quietly answered.

"Well if that is true then it would be impractical for Ryan to have left this bruise." Jesse continued on, "When someone is angry they tend to use their dominant hand, especially if they're attacking someone, such as the case of an angry man hitting his wife. This bruise on Jessica's face would have been caused by someone hitting her with their right hand. I highly doubt that Ryan would cross over his left arm to hit Jessica in the left eye, and if this was true then the bruise would have been on the outside of Jessica's eye, not the inside.

"Another thing that struck me immediately was how Jessica and Ryan acted together. Someone who's being beaten wouldn't want to stay with their attacker." Jesse pulled out a piece of paper. "This is a statement from Mel at the front desk and her observations of Jessica and Ryan's behavior together. If Ryan was hurting Jessica then I highly doubt she would have comforted him or ran to his aid when he was being attacked by Horatio." Horatio shifted uncomfortably at the mention of him attacking Ryan.

"And the one thing that I have been saying from the beginning is that this bruise is too small to be Ryan's fist. With all this said I have concluded this- Jessica Caine tripped in her bathroom this morning and hit her eye on the doorknob. There is no evidence of any form of domestic violence in this case. Ryan Wolfe _did__not_ hit Jessica Caine."

Jessica stood there for a moment before she wrapped her arms around Ryan's neck. She whimpered quietly and Ryan felt her tears on his neck. "It's ok Jess," he whispered, "Everything's going to be fine."

Horatio was quiet. He stood in place staring at the pictures on the light board. He slowly walked towards Jessica and Ryan and hesitated. Ryan gently pulled Jessica from his arms and turned with her to face her father.

"I'm so sorry Jessica," Horatio said as his voice shook. "I was wrong." He reached his hand out to touch her face but Jessica flinched away.

"Don't touch me." She said in a harsh voice, backing away. "Don't you dare touch me!"

"Jessica I'm sorry," Horatio quietly said.

Jessica placed her hand on his chest as he advanced towards her. She shook her head as tears silently fell down her cheeks. She bolted out of the room and down the hall. Jesse followed after her. He didn't want her to be alone, not right now.

Horatio looked at Ryan and turned away from him. Ryan touched his arm and Horatio turned back to him. Ryan's eyes were shining and his lips parted ever so slightly, like he was about to say something. He wrapped his arms around Horatio and pulled him into a hug. Horatio hesitated but wrapped his arms around the younger man. He held Ryan for a moment, feeling how small he felt in his arms, though Ryan was only a few inches shorter than him.

"I'm sorry Ryan" Horatio whispered. "I'm so sorry I said those things. I'm sorry I said you hurt her. I know you love my daughter and you've told her you would never hurt her, but something snapped in me when I saw her. It stirred up all the old memories and…" words became too much as the tears became too heavy.

Horatio stood there holding Ryan as the tears slid down his face. Ryan eventually pulled back and held his hand. "Come on," he quietly said, "Let's go for a walk."


	14. What I'm here for

What I'm here for

Jesse found Jessica hiding in the women's bathroom in the locker room. He slipped into the bathroom and sat next to her. Jessica wrapped her arms around his waist and buried her face into his chest.

"How could he think Ryan did this!" she cried. "He knows how much Ryan loves me and Ryan promised he would always take care of me no matter what! What's wrong with him!"

Jesse held her and listened to her sob. He wasn't sure how long they sat there but at least three people walked in and back out. Calleigh walked in and looked at them. She lifted her brows at Jesse questioning him. He shook his head and waved her off, hoping she understood. Calleigh smiled at him and left the bathroom.

Jessica sat up and looked at him, her make up smudged and her eyes red. Jesse took her glasses off her face and gently cleaned her face with his thumbs. "Do you want to talk about it?" he quietly asked her.

Jessica leaned her head into his hand and looked at him with pained eyes. "I just don't understand. He didn't believe me when I told him what happened and he wouldn't listen to me. Why would he do that?"

"Because he said it this morning, you're his baby, his little girl." Jesse said, "He's seen you get hurt too many times by someone who said they loved you. He reverted to instinct and felt the need to protect you."

"He's such as asshole sometimes!" Jessica said frustrated. "He's too over protective of me. It's like he doesn't understand that I'm an adult and I can take care of myself. If Ryan was hurting me I wouldn't have stayed this long. I had another boyfriend who tried to hurt me when I was in college. His name was Thomas. He hit me one time when he got mad at me. I left him and filed a restraining order. He has a criminal record now because of me. I don't feel bad about it. He called me one day last year and just wanted to tell me that he was sorry. He said he's never hit a woman since. He realized he had a problem with his anger and went to counseling. He's better now because of me. He thanked me for the restraining order because he felt it made him a better person."

Jesse pulled her into his arms and kissed her cheek. "You're amazing, you know that?"

Jessica smiled and kissed his cheek. "Thank you Jesse for helping me. You're a wonderful person. You've helped me so much this year and I can't thank you enough."  
>Jesse smiled at her and hugged her again. "You're my best friend, that's what I'm here for."<p> 


	15. A better man

A better man

Horatio and Ryan walked along the sidewalk outside the crime lab. They were still holding hands and were getting weird looks from passersby but didn't care. They stopped when they were off the MDPD property Ryan stopped and looked at Horatio.

"Ryan, I'm so sorry-" Horatio started to say but Ryan stopped him with a raise of his hand.

"I understand Horatio," Ryan said. "I understand why you did all of this. Jessica's your daughter and this is what you've had to deal with her entire life. I forgive you, Horatio." 

Horatio looked at him in disbelief. "You forgive me? After everything I said to you?"

Ryan nodded his head. "My Uncle always told me forgive and forget…and always bring an extra pair of underwear…just in case." He smiled slowly at Horatio and the smile was returned.

"So you really forgive me after I assaulted you this morning and accused you of hurting my daughter?"

"Yeah, because that's the kind of man my Momma and Uncle raised me to be."

Horatio looked into his eyes, like he was searching for something. "What about your father?"

Ryan sighed and Horatio could see him tense. "My father is what Momma tried to keep me from becoming." Ryan quietly said. "He wasn't the ideal father. He was almost always drunk, as best as I could remember. He used to hit my mother…a lot. I would wake up in the morning and Momma would be covered in bruises. I would ask her what happened and she would tell me she fell.

"One night Momma shoved me into a closet and told me not to come out until she came back for me. I watched the whole thing through a crack in the door. I finally understood what had been happening all along. When he was done Momma wasn't moving. I ran to her and she wouldn't wake up. I called 911 and begged them to come help my Momma. I was four.

"After that night I promised Momma I would never touch a woman the way Dad touched her. She smiled at me and told me I was already a better man than my father. She asked me if I could keep a secret and I told her yes. She said she was planning on leaving Dad. Uncle Ron was helping her. Uncle Ron loved his brother but he said he wasn't a good man, not the right man for her. Momma deserved better. They died two years later."

Ryan rubbed at his eyes to hide the tears. "I miss her so much. The day she died she almost left without saying good-bye. My father wasn't going to let her go back, but she fought against him and she ran back into Uncle Ron's house. She kissed me and held me in her arms. She told me she would always love me no matter what. I never did get to say good-bye to my father, but it really didn't matter. I loved my father only because he was my father. I didn't love him for who he was."

Horatio pulled Ryan into his arms. He held him as Ryan cried. "I promised Momma I wouldn't hurt anyone like Dad hurt her. When you accused me of hitting Jessica it pained me. For a moment I wondered if I had become the man my father was. Then I remembered it wasn't true, I didn't touch her in any way that would hurt her."

Horatio held him and felt himself tear up. "I'm sorry Ryan. I should have listened to you. Jessie Bug has always been telling me I react too quickly sometimes. I just love her so much and I promised Jessabelle that I would always protect her."

"It's alright Horatio, I forgive you." Ryan quietly said, "We all make mistakes when it comes to the ones we love. I know I did once. I almost killed for her. I did get my nose broken for it though." Ryan said as he smiled at Horatio. "Which according to the doctor has healed back just fine. No deviated septum like he thought."

Horatio couldn't help but chuckle and shake his head. "You spend too much time with my mischievous daughter. She's becoming a bad influence on you."


	16. All I can ask for

All I can ask for

Jessica walked down the hall with Jesse holding hands. She looked up when Jesse nudged her shoulder to see Horatio and Ryan walking together, their hands still clamped together.

"You need to talk to him." Jesse whispered in her ear. "You need to tell him."

Jessica sighed and felt her heart start to pound. She let go of Jesse's hand and walked towards Horatio. Jesse stood and watched as Horatio released Ryan's hand and walked to Jessica. He grasped his daughter in his arms and cried.

"I'm sorry Bug," he whispered, "I should have listened to you. Ryan's a better man than that. I know he cares too much about you to cause you pain."  
>Jessica buried her face into his shoulder and cried. "It's ok Daddy, you were just trying to protect me."<br>"No it's not ok." Horatio said, pulling back from their embrace. "You're an adult and I should trust your judgment. I know you wouldn't just sit there and let Ryan hit you. You would defend yourself and kick him to the curb. I'm so sorry Bug. Can you forgive?"

"You're my father I could never stop loving you. I can forgive you, but I'm still going to be pissed for a while."  
>Horatio chuckled and kissed her forehead. "I was expecting that." He looked at her and Jessica could see him examining her eye. "What do you want to do Bug?"<p>

"I think I just want to go home right now." Jessica said, "It's been a stressful day and I just want to go home and make Ryan clean my condo so I stop falling all the time."

Horatio chuckled and smiled at her. "Well then why don't you take that husband of yours and go home and have him Jessie proof the place?"

"He's not my husband, Daddy." Jessica said with a smirk. Horatio pulled her into his arms and held her close. "But someday he will be." He whispered in her ear.

Jessica sighed and shook her head. "So now you're psychic."  
>Horatio smiled and chuckled. "You bet. Now get out of here before I put you two back to work."<p>

Jessica smiled at her father and hugged him again. "Thanks Dad," she said quietly.

Horatio and Jesse watched Ryan and Jessica leave together holding hands. Jesse sighed and felt his heart thud when he thought about how lucky Ryan was to have her.

"I want to thank you, Mr. Cardoza, for all your hard work today." Horatio said, "It means a great deal to me that you were will to help my daughter and Ryan."  
>"Yeah," Jesse said quietly, "Anything for the happy married couple."<p>

"Jesse, did you mean it when you told Ryan you love Jessica?"

"Yeah, I did. I kick myself in the ass everyday for not acting faster, too."  
>"Have you ever told Jessica?"<p>

"I think she knows." Jesse said, "She's like her father; you don't have to tell her something for her to know it."

"I'm sorry Jesse, I know how it feels." Horatio said with a sympathetic look.

"Yeah, but she loves Ryan and he makes her happy, which is exactly what we want for our loved ones. Sure I would prefer it be me that made her feel that way, but if it makes her happy to be with him then that's all I can ask for. I'm fine with being the best guy friend that's always there for her, because in the end she'll still love me. It won't be the same way I love her, but that's all I can ask for."  
>Horatio smiled and patted him on the shoulder. "You're a good man, Jesse Cardoza."<p>

"Thanks H," Jesse said as he returned the smile.


	17. Can we try again?

Can we try again?

Jessica sat on the counter of her kitchen, Ryan standing between her legs. Ryan was gently holding an ice pack to Jessica's face. He pulled it down and smiled at her.

"You're so beautiful." Ryan said.

Jessica chuckled and returned the smile. "Even with my face all messed up?"

Ryan smiled and leaned in and kissed her forehead. "You're beautiful no matter what." Ryan tossed the ice pack back in the freezer and lifted Jessica off the counter. He carried her up to the bedroom and laid her on the bed.

Ryan began covering her in kisses as he hovered over her and Jessica smiled to herself. Jessica pulled Ryan onto the bed with her and kissed him passionately. Ryan moaned and ran his hands across her body.

"I need you, Ryan." She whispered in his ear.

Ryan smiled and kissed her lightly. "And I need you." He quietly responded.

Ryan reached into the nightstand and grabbed a condom. He continued to kiss Jessica as her hands roamed across his chest. She ran her hands up the length of his arms and interlocked their finger with their palms pressed together. She grabbed the condom from his hand and threw it across the room. Ryan broke from their kiss and looked at her.  
>"Jess we need that." He quietly said. Ryan attempted to climb from the bed but Jessica wrapped her arms around his chest. She buried her face into his shirt and Ryan felt her tears form against the fabric. "What's wrong Jessie?"<p>

"I need you, Ryan." She whispered, "I need to feel you inside me."

"Well just let me go get that and we can-"

"No Ryan, I _need_ you." Jessica placed his hand on her abdomen and pressed it against the tight muscles. There was nothing there. There hadn't been for months. "I feel so empty without her. I'm always cold now and I'm never hungry. I'm always alone and I feel like I have nothing to live for anymore. Please Ryan, I need you, I need her. Please, can we try again?"

Ryan sat there with his hand on her flat belly. Jessica seemed so much smaller since she lost their baby. Ryan leaned his forehead against hers and kissed her gently. He looked into her large, sad eyes. He gently stroked her face with his fingertips and kissed her again.

"Alright," Ryan said, "Anything for you my love."


	18. Bother

Bother

Ryan looked at the crime scene before him. He and Eric were in the glades searching through a bog for a supposed dead body that an anonymous 911 call had tipped them off about. Eric could tell something was bothering Ryan and wondered if the events from the day before were still eating at him.

"Hey Ry," Eric said to him, "You're not still upset about the investigation Horatio made Cardoza do, are you?"

"No," Ryan answered gloomily, "I already told Horatio I forgive him. I understand why he freaked out on me. Jessica's his baby and abuse is something he's had to deal with her entire life."

"Then what's bothering you?" Eric prompted.

"Nothing," Ryan quietly said.

"Come on man, we've been friends for too long for you to be able to hide anything from me." Eric said, "What's on your mind that's got you so wigged out today?"

Ryan took a deep breath and slowly exhaled. "Jessica and I had a talk last night."

Eric looked at him concerned. "What about?"

"She was really upset about Elizabeth."  
>"Izzy?" Eric asked confused.<p>

"No, not Izzy. Elizabeth, our daughter."

Eric looked at him as sadness filled his heart. "What's wrong?"

"Jessica said she feels alone and empty without her and that she has nothing to live for anymore."

"Postpartum depression?" Eric muttered. "Do you think she needs help?"

"I don't know." Ryan said quietly, pausing briefly before he continued. "She asked me if we could try for another."

"What did you do?" Eric asked surprise.

"I complied." Ryan practically whispered. "She wanted to try and I just went along with it."

"Do you really think that was a good idea?"

"I don't know. Jessica seemed fine for the longest time and then suddenly she became so depressed. I think it was the pregnancy scare."

"Pregnancy scare?" Eric questioned.

"Yeah Jessica was a few days late and she was scared she might be pregnant. The tests both came back negative though."

"Well that's a good thing, isn't it? I mean she's still healing and I thought Alexx told you guys not to try for another baby for awhile."

"Yeah, it should have been a good thing."

"Should have been?" Eric prompted again.

"Yeah, we were both disappointed it was negative."

Eric sighed. "Ryan when the time is right it'll happen. This is just a sign that the timing isn't right now. Everything will work out for you guys, you just have to give it time."

Ryan sighed and looked at his best friend." Yeah, I know, I'm just impatient."  
>Eric chuckled and smiled at his friend. "Well let's just hope your children inherit Jessica's patience. When are you guys getting married anyways?"<p>

Ryan groaned and jabbed at the ground with his shovel. "Why, why always that question? Everyone thinks we're going to get married and asks us that question."

"Well when are you guys getting married?" Eric continued to harass him.

"When we're ready." Ryan determinedly said, "When we're ready to spend the rest of our lives together we'll get married. And I promise Eric you'll be the first to know when it happens."

"Does that mean I get to come to the wedding?"

Ryan smirked. "Of course I think Jessie would shoot me if I didn't invite Uncle Eric."

Eric laughed and groaned. "Oh man, that means you'll be my nephew! Maybe you guys shouldn't get married."  
>"Why, because you don't want a white boy ruining your family? Because if I remember right you let Horatio marry your sister and he's whiter than me."<p>

"Shut up you! But for real, you'll let me know?"

"Yup, as soon as I get the ok from H I'll call you."

Eric looked at him perplexed. "Get the ok from H?"

"Well yeah, you didn't think I was going to propose to my boss's daughter without his permission first, did you?"

"I never know with you man. Crazy Ryan Wolfe, fucking his boss's daughter for ten months now."

"Oh shut up or I'm leaving you here."

"You have to beat me to the Hummer though and I can guarantee I can outrun your white ass."

"Only because you had to run to get into this country!" Ryan yelled as he took off running towards the Hummer.

"Oh hell no!" Eric yelled at Ryan as he ran after him. "I'm Cuban and that means I swam my ass in when I was a baby!"

"Details, details!" Ryan yelled as he continued to run from Eric, who was quickly catching up to him.

They spirited through the bog laughing and yelling playful banter at each other. They were almost back to the Hummer when Ryan tripped and fell. Eric jumped over him and victoriously slammed his hand against the Hummer.

"Ha! Take that whitey delighty!"

"Um Eric, I think I found that body we were looking for," Ryan said as he pulled his rubber boot from the abdomen of a mostly decomposed young woman. "You want to bring me the spare set of boots? I'm going to have to bag these ones."

"Yeah I would think so white boy." Eric said as he dug through the Hummer for a spare pair of boots. "This is going to be a fun one to explain to the boss. And I think I'll leave that one to you lover boy. I would suggest not starting it off with 'Hey H, so I banged your daughter last night and it was great and then Eric and I ran through the crime scene this morning and I stepped in our DB. But don't worry we found the body.' Well actually if you said it that way he might not get as mad."

Ryan rolled his eyes and tugged at his boat. "Just hand me the boots."

Eric laughed and tossed the boots to him. "I'll get a bag."  
>"Yeah because you know I won't ride in the Hummer if these things are exposed."<br>"Well when you put it that way maybe we shouldn't bag them."

"Careful Eric, I'm banging the boss's daughter, and you have no clue what kind of power that gives you."

"Yeah" Eric said, "And from what I hear it's free breakfast when you're hungover and sometimes lunch."

**And thus ends this story. Told you it was short. The next one will be up in the next few days or so, and it's much longer. lol**


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